Public Geographies and the Gendered Experience of Saying “Yes” to the Media

Abstract

Debates about public scholarship and research impact are vital for geographers, helping us examine who our work is for and how we can make change in the world. Although there is a vibrant literature on geography’s “public voice,” we have not significantly engaged with who contributes to public scholarship—and participation is neither equal nor equally valued. Using a case study of academic women’s contributions to the media, this article examines how gender interacts with academics’ motivations and concerns about public scholarship. Beyond the question of whether the free labor of media engagement is worth one’s time among the various pressures of the neoliberal university, I argue that we do not come into or contribute to public scholarship equally. The article centers three interconnected factors that currently limit equitable participation: gendered social norms about who is an “expert” (confidence and everyday sexism), job security (pretenure and never-tenured precarity), and a fear of backlash (from online insults to death threats). I conclude by offering practical suggestions for supporting diverse public scholarship, while also recognizing the many “limits to dialogue.”